712 E Harrison St

Sparta, IL 62286

$17,900D

6 bd · 1.0 ba · 1,600 sqft · Built 1950 · SingleFamily · Active · 342 DOM

Cashflow @ list (25.0% down · 7.5%)

• Estimated rent: $1,069/mo
• Mortgage (P&I): −$94
• Tax + insurance: −$30
• HOA: −$0
• Vac / Maint / Mgmt: −$225
• Net cashflow: $721/mo
• Annual: $8,651/yr
• Cap rate: 54.62%
• Cash-on-cash: 172.60%
• DSCR: 8.68
• 1% rule: 5.97%
• Cash to close: $5,012

Investor read

• This is a 6-bed/1.0-bath single-family listed at $18k.
• At list price, monthly cash flow is $721 ($9k/yr) — positive.
• The deal already cash-flows at list — no discount required.
• Meets the 1% rule at list price ($1k rent vs $18k).
• It's been on market 342 days — a 12% lower offer ($16k) is reasonable based on typical stale-listing flexibility.
• Recommended offer: $16k (12.0% below list) — sets the bar for market timing.
• Local home prices are declining (-3.0%/yr); year-one equity from $124 of loan paydown is wiped out by about $537 of value loss. Plan a longer hold.
• Location reads 58/100 on livability (#1,090 in IL) — a working-class tenant base; expect higher turnover. Strengths: cost of living A+, housing A+, crime B+; Watch: employment C-, schools F, amenities F.
• Sparta CUSD 140 (town): math 13% / reading 14% proficiency, ranked #535 of 620 in IL (top 86%) — low school quality limits family demand, transient renter base, plan for 1-2y turnover.
• Watch-outs: built in 1950 — expect roof / HVAC / electrical / plumbing capex.
• Market conditions: 31 active listings in the ZIP; 3 units permitted in Randolph County in 2024 (0 in 5+ unit buildings).
• Randolph County population projected at -14% by 2050 — secular population decline; favor cash flow + early exit over multi-decade hold.
• 5 sale attempts; this cycle's ask has dropped $32k (64%) from the opening price — seller is motivated, your offer sets the floor, not the list.
• At projected returns (-3.0% appreciation + 3.0% rent growth), your $5k cash investment doubles in ~1 year — after that, you're playing with house money.
• Climate carrying-cost: extreme-heat days projected 7→21/yr by 2055 (HVAC capex compounding) — expect insurance premiums to compound above CPI over the hold.
• Cap rate 54.6% vs local median 6.7% in Sparta — top-decile yield for the area; either an underpriced asset or a hidden risk that comps aren't pricing in. Stress-test before assuming the spread holds.

Questions for listing agent

• It's been on market 342 days. Have you received any prior offers? Is the seller open to a 12% concession, seller financing, or rate buy-down credit?
• Built in 1950 — when were the roof, HVAC, electrical panel, plumbing, and water heater last replaced?
• Why hasn't it sold? Are there any deal-killer items the seller is aware of (foundation, flood, title, zoning, code violations)?
• Is there a deadline driving the sale (1031 exchange, divorce, estate, relocation)? That informs how much negotiation room exists.
• Schools are F-rated, which usually means shorter tenancies and higher turnover. Who's the typical renter profile here, and what's been the actual vacancy rate?
• The area grade is low — what's the realistic commute time and amenity access for the typical tenant pool here? Any planned neighborhood developments (good or bad) we should know about?
• What's the average days-on-market for RENTAL listings here right now (not sales)? A rising rental-DOM trend means longer vacancies and softer asking-rent achievability than the comps imply.
• What's the recent tenant-quality profile in this submarket — average credit score on applications, eviction rate, late-payment / NSF rate, and stable-employment percentage? A property-management company in the area should have these aggregated.